Dear Editor, Anyone who
’s known Fernanda Hernandez over the course of her 9-year life
has been struck by her high level of spirited independence.
Dear Editor,
Anyone who’s known Fernanda Hernandez over the course of her 9-year life has been struck by her high level of spirited independence. Fernanda’s energy and zeal for living has sometimes been dizzying, as she’s run circles around the rest of us, kids and adults alike. An artistic high-achiever at school, a soccer and softball star after school, Fernanda has always been in motion.
Her sparkling blue-green eyes have always held bright ideas and plans. It is who Fernanda is, strong and high-spirited, that makes her current condition harder to accept. But it is also her strength and her spirit that give us hope for Fernanda’s future.
Since July 3, 2004, Fernanda, the daughter of Jake and Debbie Hernandez, has been fighting to recover from a brain hemorrhage. Now, no longer in life-threatening condition, Fernanda is in a rehabilitation facility in Saratoga, strenuously working toward recovery from the damage done by both the initial injury and damage incurred shortly afterwards.
At the present time, three months after the trauma, it’s hard to say exactly just how much she will recover; we just know that significant damage has occurred.
Rehab experts are encouraging that the brain can recover dramatically in a year and that a child’s brain can recover even more dramatically. But for the family sitting at her side every day, helping with physical therapy and praying for her to make purposeful movements, the road has already been long and weary.
Because of their deep involvement in local community life, the plight of Fernanda and her family has struck a nerve in Morgan Hill. Friends and relatives have rallied to help the family provide around-the-clock presence at Fernanda’s side. At two prayer vigils in July and August, churches were packed with friends and neighbors from Fernanda’s school, church, soccer and softball teams.
“The Hernandez family has touched the lives of so many people,” said Darcia Sterling. “How could we not be affected by what they are going through? How could we not walk through this with them? They would do it for us.”
Because the astronomical costs of long term care threaten to put a heavy burden on the family, friends and neighbors are planning fundraisers.
Fernanda’s friends and classmates at the Charter School of Morgan Hill, along with her teammates on local sports teams are planning their own project.
These groups are sponsoring a “Friends of Fernanda” poster contest. The winning artwork will be silk-screened on T-shirts that will be sold in the community to raise funds.
While one goal of this project is to raise money, another goal is to give kids in the community a sense that they are doing something to help their friend. “Besides praying for her,” says classmate Sarah Witmer, “we’ve felt kind of helpless to do anything. This is a way we can help.”
The family will be the first to say how much they view prayer as significant help: “Prayers are a means by which God brings about change in this world,” says Jacob. “However, we shouldn’t approach him with a cavalier attitude and with the expectation that he will eventually give us what we want.
The same God that can miraculously heal Fernanda is the same God that could have prevented her injury. Our hope is in his promise that all things work out for good for those who love Him.”
Toward the end of Fernanda’s stay in an Oakland hospital a custodian emptying the trash in the pediatric intensive care unit asked Fernanda’s mother for Fernanda’s full name. When she was told “Fernanda Esperanza Hernandez” the woman’s face lit up. “Esperanza!” she said. “That means ‘Hope.’”
Donations to the “Friends of Fernanda” recovery fund can be made at the Washington Mutual branch on the corner of Monterey Road and Main Avenue in Morgan Hill.
A holiday boutique takes place at Machado School on Sunday, Oct. 24, from 11am-3pm. Items for sale will include jewelry, scarves, home décor and baked goods. Proceeds will go to Fernanda’s recovery fund.
Daily updates on Fernanda’s progress can be found at: www.caringbridge.org/ca /fernanda
Sally Witmer, Morgan Hill
